Dragon Age: Origins A Warden's Tale
by DestinyCallsInc
Summary: Jaya'Mohana, an elf warden from Rivain has been Duncan's right hand for five years. With the defeat at Ostagar she found herself in the dungeons of a Bann loyal to Loghain. Now that she's escaped will she join forces with the remaining two Wardens?


Jaya'Mohana ran, her heart beating furiously in her chest, her breath coming in short gasps as fear, and sorrow overtook her heart. She could hear the men behind her and she knew that her quick reflexes, her ability to dodge effortlessly between the trees, was all that was keeping her ahead of them. An arrow whizzed past her ear and she made a sharp left and risked a glance behind her. Three men ran after her, one with a bow raised and another arrow knocked. Where the other three men were she did not know and she could only pray that they were not planning to cut her off ahead. A cry of pain escaped her lips as a well-aimed arrow embedded itself in her right shoulder. She stumbled forward and scrambled up a small hill, clutching her shoulder as she tried to regain her former pace. Another arrow clipped her leg and she fell, her muscles convulsing as she turned to face the three men who had now slowed to a jog as they neared her. She crawled backward and used the trunk of a tree to help her climb to her feet. She reached back and yanked the arrow from her shoulder, grimacing and watching the men with a defiant expression.  
"Now, now there s no need for you to get hurt anymore. You come with us back to the nice dungeon and we ll take real good care of you." The archer said, a cruel leer on his face, as he surveyed the elf wantonly. By this point Jaya was well past any pretense and her only answer was to spit derisively at the archer s feet. The archer growled in disgust and one of his comrades laughed, a deep laugh of a man who knew he had all the power he could ever want and was more than happy to use."What a defiant little knife ear..." He drew a long, wicked looking dagger and stepped closer to Jaya until the tip of the dagger was against her throat. "At the risk of sounding cliche, you must know that resistance is futile." He sneered.  
"Resistance?" Jaya managed a small laugh, paying for her boldness as the dagger bit into her neck and a thin trickle of blood began to flow. "I shall resist you to my last breath!" She hissed, hitting his arm away and sending the dagger flying into a nearby trunk.  
The man quickly regained himself and kneed the elf in the stomach, causing her to double over in a futile effort to regain her breath. Not a moment had passed before his gauntlet connected with her cheek and she found herself on the forest floor with the taste of copper in her mouth. She glared up at the guardsmen, her pride refusing to allow her to give up despite the darkness threatening on the edge of her vision. The archer came forward to stand next to his comrade as he looked down at the beaten and beautiful elf. "I am very glad we caught up with this one. It would be a shame to lose such a delightful companion." He said suggestively, a perverse laugh echoing through the trees.  
Jaya'Mohana's eyes widened as an arrow appeared through the archer's throat and his laughter died as quickly as he did. His body fell to the forest floor at Jaya's feet before his comrades could turn to face his murderer. Jaya looked at the dead man in front of her and smiled a morbid pleasure racing through her even as the world faded from view. Her last sight, before blood loss took its toll, was the face of a mabari coming close to hers and sniffing tentatively.

"What stray have you brought to camp this time?" Morrigan asked, watching Rian, Alistair and the dog return to camp with an elf in Rian's arms. Rian ignored her and set Tia Dalma in his tent and motioning for Wynne to join him. "Oh my, isn't that the Grey Warden that took over at Ostagar while Duncan was recruiting?" She asked, kneeling down to examine the girl.  
"Yes." Answered Alistair from where he was standing outside the tent. "She was Duncan's right hand, most of us thought he was training her to replace him..." he trailed off, still having trouble with the idea of Duncan's death.  
"We're assuming she was the one enjoying Bann Loren's dungeons." Rian said, watching Wynne examine the elf. "When we got there she was pretty much surrounded, and already wounded." Wynne nodded. "It looks like this poor girl hasn t had a good meal in months-"  
"And she s not likely to get one with us!" Alistair interjected.  
Wynne ignored him and focused her attention on Jaya's shoulder. "She's lucky, this wound isn't dangerous... her biggest problem is blood loss but I think she'll be just fine." 


End file.
